Above the Flatlands: A Guide to Camping at the Bunya Mountains

Bunya Mountains National Park is on Aboriginal land. I acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of this area and their connection to Country, and pay my respects to their Elders past and present.

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Bunya Mountains National Park isn’t the biggest national park you’ll ever come across but it’s close enough to Brisbane for a relaxing camping weekend away in the Southeast.

Rising some 1,100m above sea level the South Burnett flatlands, the Bunya Mountains offer expansive views across the surrounding countryside and enough hiking to keep things interesting for a couple of days. Or if you’re feeling lazy, you could spot a wallaby or read a good book.

If you are looking for walking tracks, lookouts and what else to do at Bunya Mountains, I’ve got a detailed Bunya Mountains National Park guide before diving into the camping details below.

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CHOOSING YOUR CAMPSITE AT BUNYA MOUNTAINS

Camping at Bunya Mountains is popular but with three distinct camping areas on offer, you have a few decisions to make.

If you want creature comforts, including hot showers, don’t mind a crowd and have a caravan, Dandabah is your best option. Otherwise, head to either Burtons Well or Westcott camping area for more basic facilities.

Regardless of which area you pick, remember that you need to pre-book your site, and especially for long weekends or school holidays, you’ll want to do that well in advance. It gets busy around here.

DANDABAH CAMPING AREA

Dandabah is the largest camping area at Bunya Mountains and set up for about 70 people. When it’s full, like it tends to be over long weekends, it can feel quite busy.

The campground is an open, grassy area that’s more or less in the heart of the tiny settlement of the same name. There are no designated campsites; everybody basically camps in a circle, which I found a bit weird. It’s like you’re constantly staring at each other.

The entire area is sloped so aim for the top section of the campground as it’s much flatter. We scored a site at the far end towards the picnic shelter but unfortunately on the down slope. It took a lot of mucking around with the tent until I was happy with it, and even then we were sleeping on a bit of an angle, though it was manageable.

Dandabah is a family destination so while there was a lot of noise from children early in the morning, it also meant everybody went to bed at a reasonable hour. I approve. 🙂

Since the Bunyas are at a higher elevation, expect cooler temperatures. At Easter, it’s generally not yet freezing but it’s good to have layers for the evenings. I was glad to have my fleece jacket since we always end up cooking really late.

Not being exactly off the beaten track means that you don’t need to bring your camping toilet. There are facilities at all three camping areas. Dandabah has flush toilets and even hot showers.

There are also rubbish bins at Dandabah located just outside the camping area, which is pretty uncommon for Queensland national parks.

Be aware that the area is known for ticks but we didn’t have any trouble with them in April. Talk to the rangers if you have any concerns.

WESTCOTT CAMPING AREA

If Dandabah is too big for you, Westcott camping area is a smaller alternative set up for about 30 people.

The area is just as grassy and perfect for tent camping, though you won’t be able to camp right next to your vehicle in most cases as you can’t drive onto the grassy area here.

It is surrounded by forest on two sides without designated or individual sites—sort of a smaller version of Dandabah. But being on the western side of the range, you’re close to the western walking tracks.

Facilities at Westcott include hybrid toilets and (non-potable) water but no showers. Unlike Dandabah, you’ll need to take your rubbish home as there no rubbish bins here.

BURTONS WELL CAMPING AREA

The Burtons Well camping area is larger than Westcott, set up for about 50 people, and offers more trees, barbeques and some fire rings.

It also extremely sloped so you’d need to scout around for a suitable site. You might be able to get some views across the farmland from your campsite here but with the sloping, I reckon it’s a bit trickier finding a good spot, especially if the campground is busy.

Like Westcott, Burtons Well camping area doesn’t offer vehicle-based camping (on the same site) either, which I always find to be a bit of a pain with the camping fridge etc. in the car.

On the plus side, there are some picnic tables scattered around and you may be able to set up your tent close enough to make use of one.

There is a cold shower cubicle here that you can use with your own portable hot shower system if you have one—apparently you can also heat water in the boiler provided but it’s always been out of action when we’ve been there. There are composting/hybrid toilets.

You don’t have direct access to any walking tracks at Burtons Well so you’ll need to drive if you want to do any hiking. That said, you also don’t have a lot of passing traffic so it’s potentially a much quieter site overall.

As with Westcott, there are no rubbish bins here so pack out what you bring and practise responsible camping.

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READY TO CAMP AT THE BUNYA MOUNTAINS?

Each camping areas has its benefits. At Dandabah, you’re nice and close to all the action, including the café, weekend markets and the main walking tracks. At Burtons Well and Westcott, you can potentially find more privacy and will see far fewer day-trippers.

Burtons Well also offers those expansive views across the eastern flatlands, making it my top pick (despite the tricky, slopey ground).

But no matter where you camp, enjoy your adventure!

Happy camping,

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